Associations of Serum Uric Acid Levels With Macrovascular and Renal Microvascular Dysfunction Among Individuals From Sub-Saharan Africa

Abstract

IMPORTANCESerum uric acid (SUA) level is associated with vascular dysfunction in Eurasian populations, but little is known about this association in individuals from sub-Saharan Africa, who have a high prevalence of both relatively high SUA levels and vascular dysfunction. OBJECTIVES To assess the associations of SUA levels with macrovascular and kidney microvascular dysfunction in individuals of sub-Saharan African ancestry and evaluate potential factors that could mediate these associations. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS Cross-sectional analyses of baseline data from the multicenter Research on Obesity and Diabetes Among African Migrants study, conducted from 2012 to 2015, were performed from January to March 2021. The population included Ghanaian individuals living in Ghana and Europe. EXPOSURE Abnormal SUA levels.MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES Logistic regression was used to examine the associations of SUA level quartiles with microvascular (albuminuria) and macrovascular (peripheral artery disease and coronary artery disease) dysfunction, with adjustments for age, sex, estimated glomerular filtration rate, site of residence, socioeconomic status, alcohol, smoking, diabetes, hypertension, waist-hip ratio, and total cholesterol level. Mediation analysis was performed to assess whether the association was via elevated blood pressure, hemoglobin A 1c , and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein levels or via weight-hip ratio. The research questions were formulated after data collection. RESULTSA total of 4919 Ghanaian individuals (3047 [61.9%] women) aged 25-75 years (mean [SD], 46.26 [11.08] years) were included. There was a significant positive association between SUA quartiles and albuminuria, but not coronary artery disease or peripheral artery disease, after adjustment for covariates. After full adjustment, individuals in the fourth SUA quartile had higher odds of albuminuria (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 1.54; 95% CI, 1.07-2.21), but not peripheral artery disease (aOR, 1.35; 95% CI, 0.87-2.08) or coronary artery disease (aOR, 1.09; 95% CI, 0.77-1.55), compared with individuals in the first quartile. After full adjustment, systolic and diastolic blood pressure significantly mediated the association between SUA concentrations and albuminuria, accounting for 19.4% of the total association for systolic and 17.2% for diastolic blood pressure; hemoglobin A 1c , high-sensitivity C-reactive protein, and waist-hip ratio did not mediate this association. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCEIn this cross-sectional study among a sub-Saharan African population, elevated SUA levels were significantly associated with kidney microvascular dysfunction and mediated partly through elevated blood pressure. These findings suggest that individuals from (continued) Key Points Question Are high or low serum uric acid levels associated with vascular dysfunction in individuals with sub-Saharan African ancestry? Findings In this cross-sectional analysis that included 4919 people from Ghana, elevated serum uric acid level was significantly associate...

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